Fifty Five Things I've Learned in 55 Years

Last December, my blogging amiga Kalyn posted a list for her birthday: Sixty Things I've Learned in Sixty Years. Like so many readers, friends and fellow food bloggers, I was inspired by her post. So as birthday number fifty-five (fifty-five? how is that possible?) sat on the horizon as opaque and huge as June Gloom in Los Angeles, I was inspired to write my own list of hard won wisdom. Just to cheer myself up. And shake some cobwebs loose.

Fifty-five just scares the pants off me, I gotta confess.

Fifty Five Things I've Learned in 55 Years

1. If you feel a thing in your gut, pay attention. It's true.

2. If you're allergic to juniper, don't move to Santa Fe.

3. Regrets are good teachers.

4. The right shade of lipstick can boost your immune system.

5. If you love the sea, don't move to New Mexico.

6. Most people don't listen. They're biding time until they get to speak.

7. If you cry on your honeymoon, darling, it's not a good sign.

8. Chips and salsa can save your life.

9. Infidelity murders trust.

10. Injectibles don't make you look younger, Darling. They make you look insecure. (See #43.)

11. A day without coffee is just wrong.

12. Good sex is highly underrated. Women, you know what I'm talking about.